


Don't you know? Ladybug and Marinette don't get along

by therealjanebingley



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Everyone loves Marinette, F/M, Identity Reveal, Marinette is panicking, Plagg is the worst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-07
Updated: 2020-04-07
Packaged: 2021-03-02 04:48:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,117
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23529424
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/therealjanebingley/pseuds/therealjanebingley
Summary: Chat Noir, Rena Rouge, and Carapace try to convince Ladybug that they've found a perfect new ally.Ladybug can't explain why she won't give Marinette a miraculous.
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir & Alya Césaire & Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug & Nino Lahiffe, Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Alya Césaire/Nino Lahiffe
Comments: 102
Kudos: 1458
Collections: Miraculous





	Don't you know? Ladybug and Marinette don't get along

**Author's Note:**

> Love me some wholesome, uplifting one-shots. The length definitely got away from me, but what can you do?

"My Lady?"

"Yes, Chat?"

The two superheroes sat on the Eiffel Tower, taking a moment to catch their breath at the end of patrol. Chat Noir swung his legs over the dizzying drop. "How do you choose our allies?"

The night wind blew Ladybug's bangs aside. "Hmm?"

"I know Chloe found her miraculous on accident, but what made you choose Rena Rouge and Carapace's civilian selves?"

Ladybug thought for a moment, trying to find an explanation that wouldn't give away any identities. "Well, in both of those fights we definitely needed the extra help. Both times, I looked around and saw someone who genuinely wanted to help, but didn't necessarily have the power to do so. They're both good people, and I know they would never abuse their miraculous."

Chat leaned back. "I have a suggestion, then. About who should get a miraculous the next time we need an ally."

"Chat," Ladybug warned, "if you give me the name of someone in your civilian life, it could compromise your identity."

Chat Noir rolled his eyes, but couldn't help but smile. "Don't worry, my Lady, it's someone we both know in the masks. You remember Marinette Dupain-Cheng?"

Ladybug's heart stopped. "Uhhh, vaguely?"

"She's the girl who helped us fight Evillustrator," Chat prattled on, oblivious to his partner's inner panic. "And she'd make a great superhero. She's brave and smart, and would definitely use her powers for good!"

"I don't know, Chat," Ladybug said slowly. "It wouldn't be safe if we both knew her identity."

Her partner's shoulders drooped. "I know I get controlled by akumas a lot, Bug." He turned to her, face uncharacteristically serious. "But I would never hurt Marinette. Not even Hawkmoth could make me do that."

Ladybug blinked. When had Chat grown so attached to her civilian identity? "That's really sweet, Chat. I'll think about it, okay?"

He grinned, bouncing to his feet. "Thanks, Bug. See you later!"

* * *

"Pound it!" Ladybug, Chat Noir, and Rena Rouge bumped fists.

Ladybug's miraculous beeped. "See you next time, Chat! Let's go, Rena." The two superwomen launched themselves into a narrow alleyway. "Good work today. Your illusions are getting much stronger!"

"Thanks, Ladybug!" Alya beamed at the praise, releasing her transformation. "I can't even tell you how grateful I am to be a part of this team. Working with you is a dream come true!"

Ladybug giggled. If only Alya knew her idol sat next to her in class everyday! "You've more than earned your place on this team. I'm glad I can trust you."

Alya unclasped her necklace and set it delicately in the box Ladybug held out to her. "You know, if we're ever in need of more allies, I think I have someone in mind."

Ladybug raised an eyebrow. "Oh?"

The reporter nodded eagerly. "She's a little scatterbrained-"

Oh.

"-but her heart is in the right place-"

Oh, no.

"-I've seen her stand up to bullies, comfort akuma victims-"

Not again.

"-and she's a great leader! Her name is-"

Please, anybody but -

"-Marinette, and she's my best friend."

Ladybug looked at Alya, heart warm from her friend's praise. "Hopefully we won't need any more allies," she began, searching for the right words, "and you know it would be dangerous, because you would know her identity."

"Nino and I know each other's identities," Alya argued. "It hasn't been a problem for us."

"Yet," Ladybug said gently. "I - I'll keep her in mind, okay?"

The Ladyblogger's face lit up. "Thanks, Ladybug!"

* * *

"That was a rough akuma." Ladybug offered her three teammates a warm smile. "You guys did a great job!"

"I gotta say, it's fur-ry nice working with you, man." Chat Noir bumped his shoulder against Carapace's.

Carapace grinned. "Back at you, dude. Hey, did you guys see Mari - uh, that civilian chick today?"

Chat's ears perked up. "You mean Marinette? She was awesome!"

Ladybug grimaced. Today's akuma required two lucky charms, so partway through the battle she'd had to detransform to feed Tikki. Unfortunately, the akuma chose that moment to attack Carapace from behind, and Marinette didn't think - she just saw her teammate in trouble and acted. 

Which is how civilian Marinette ended up tackling Carapace to safety, shielding him from the akuma with her body. Chat had immediately snatched her up and carried her a few blocks away, simultaneously praising her bravery and scolding her for putting herself in danger.

"I think it was while you were recharging, Ladybug," Rena recounted. "The akuma came up behind Carapace, and Chat and I were too far away to do anything - then Marinette jumped out of nowhere and pushed him out of the way!"

Carapace nodded reverently. "She totally saved me, dude."

Ladybug forced a smile. "I'm glad she was able to help, but it was pretty reckless of her to jump into danger like that."

"Not reckless," Rena Rouge argued, "brave!"

"Yeah!" Carapace agreed. "She'd be a great superhero."

"That's what I've been saying!" Chat exclaimed.

"You, too?" Rena asked excitedly.

They babbled on for a minute, praising Marinette and pointing out all of her superhero-like qualities. Ladybug grew more and more panicked with every word. "Guys," she finally interrupted, voice firm, "Marinette cannot have a miraculous."

Silence. The three heroes stared at their leader, shocked. "Why not?" Rena asked, blinking. "She's like, the only person I know who hasn't been akumatized."

"Even Rena and I have been akumatized as civilians," Carapace said.

Chat nodded. "And I get taken over by akumas at least once a week."

Ladybug sighed. "Look, you just need to trust me on this. I'm not giving Marinette a miraculous."

"My Lady-" Chat Noir looked hesitant. "Do you have something against Marinette?"

The heroine in question stared at her partner. How did she end up in this situation? "No, it's nothing like that."

Rena Rouge frowned. "You hesitated."

"I didn't hesitate."

"You did a little," Carapace muttered.

"I didn't hesitate!" Ladybug balled her fists. "I don't have anything against her, I just - it's just that-" she stomped her foot. "She just can't be a hero!"

The other three heroes stared, slack-jawed. Finally, Chat Noir spoke. "You know we adore you, right Ladybug?"

"I - what?"

Chat put a comforting hand on her shoulder. "You don't need to be jealous of her, bug. Just because we all love her doesn't mean we'll love you any less if she's on the team."

Now it was Ladybug's turn to stare. Jealous? Of her civilian self? If anything, her civilian self was jealous of her superhero self. "I'm not jealous."

"I've always thought you guys would get along really well," Rena said, sounding more than a little distressed. "You're so similar."

Ladybug saw her chance and took it. "We're _too_ similar, Rena. I don't think we would work well together."

"That doesn't make sense!" The other three heroes all started talking at once, each one determined to defend Marinette's honor.

Mercifully, Ladybug's miraculous beeped. "Rena, Carapace, it's time to go. Just trust me on this, okay?"

* * *

The next morning, Marinette scrambled into her seat a full three minutes before class started. "Good morning, Alya!"

"Hey, girl." Alya had her reporter face on. "What do you think of Ladybug?"

"What?" Marinette paused as Nino and Adrien turned around, obviously interested in her answer. "Uh, I mean, she's great! She's the savior of Paris, right? Who wouldn't love her!" She giggled nervously.

Alya frowned. "I don't know," she said slowly, "you've never been the biggest fan of the Ladyblog."

"That's ridiculous! I'm on the Ladyblog all the time." Not for the reasons Alya might think, but that wasn't for her to know.

"Yeah, but you've never been as enamored with her as the rest of us are."

"Didn't you work with her that one time?" Nino asked. "With Evillustrator?"

"No, that was just Chat Noir," Adrien said automatically. "Ladybug was busy doing something else."

Marinette shifted uncomfortably. She needed to end this conversation, and fast. "It was just Chat Noir, but I wish Ladybug had been there. Imagine, working with the heroine of Paris!"

Alya, Nino, and Adrien all got dreamy looks on their faces. Marinette breathed a sigh of relief. But before she could change the subject, Alya's eyes narrowed. "Do you think you'd work well with Ladybug?"

Nino and Adrien looked at her expectantly. "I guess?" Marinette said, tugging at one of her pigtails. "I mean, I'm pretty clumsy, so I don't think I'd be able to help that much."

"Nonsense!" Adrien said. "You'd be a great superhero."

Marinette flushed at his praise. "You that's of nice - uh, I mean, that's nice of you to say, Adrien."

Alya opened her mouth to press the issue further, but at that moment Ms. Bustier started class. Marinette slumped in her seat. Alya and Nino were not being subtle enough - she'd have to pull them aside for a chat. At least Adrien thought she'd be a great superhero! She sighed, falling into a daydream about fighting Hawkmoth with Adrien by her side.

* * *

Marinette sat on her balcony, going over the battle plan one more time. Her teammates got each other riled up too easily, so she'd need to divide and conquer. She would suggest splitting up for patrol, letting Rena Rouge and Carapace take a route by themselves while she stuck with Chat. Her argument against giving 'Marinette' a miraculous would have to hinge on the danger of everyone on the team knowing 'Marinette's' identity - she lectured Chat Noir about identities enough to know he would eventually back down. Then she could pull Alya and Nino aside as she took their miraculous back at the end of the night and make the same argument, focusing on the concerns of putting their friend in unnecessary danger.

With any luck, this whole fiasco would be over by the end of the night.

But luck did not seem to be on her side.

As Marinette was about to transform, Chat Noir landed on her balcony. She shrieked. "Chat Noir! You gave me a heart attack."

"Sorry, Purr-incess." Chat flashed his brilliant smile. "I didn't mean to startle you."

Marinette patted her purse nervously. "So, um, what are you doing here? Don't you have pat - uh - superhero stuff to be doing?"

Chat's expression grew serious. "Yes. I'm actually on special superhero business tonight, and I need your help."

Special superhero business? Why hadn't he told Ladybug? And what about patrol? "Oh. Tonight's not really good for me - can it wait?"

Chat grinned wickedly. "Nope!" In one fluid motion, he picked her up and leapt off the balcony.

Marinette shrieked again, clutching his shoulders. "What are you doing?"

"Don't worry, Princess! You're safe with me!"

He bounded across several rooftops and came to a stop in front of Rena Rouge and Carapace. Marinette scrambled out of his arms and backed away.

"You must be Marinette!" Rena said, smiling.

"Nice to meet you, dude." Carapace nodded at her. "Thanks for saving me the other day."

Marinette giggled nervously. "Oh, you know - you guys save Paris all the time! It's the least I could do."

The three heroes exchanged a look, and Chat stepped forward. "Look, Marinette. We know you and Ladybug have some bad blood between you."

Marinette's mouth dropped open. How did this keep happening?

"This is an intervention." Rena's voice was friendly, but firm. "You guys need to talk to each other and sort this out."

"We'll be here the whole time," Carapace assured her. "You and Ladybug are both super cool, I'm sure you'll be able to figure it out."

Marinette gave herself exactly two seconds to mourn the death of her battle plan. Then she kicked her brain into high gear, searching desperately for a way out of this increasingly ridiculous situation. "Uhh, that's really nice of you guys, but-"

"She'll be here any minute," Chat said, checking his baton.

"She won't." Marinette was sure they could hear the whirring of her brain as it overloaded. "She won't come if she sees me here."

The heroes looked at her questioningly. Marinette made a split-second decision and jumped head-first into this excuse. "The truth is, we just can't stand being around each other. I'm sorry, but this is something you can't fix."

"What happened between you guys that was so bad?" Chat asked, clearly distressed. Rena Rouge and Carapace leaned forward, frowning. 

Marinette opened her mouth, but nothing came out.

_We used to date, and it ended really badly._

_She hates my parents' bakery._

_Ladybugs have always been my least favorite bug._

_We both think we're Chat's best friend, and we don't want to make him choose._

That sparked an idea. "We're in love with the same boy," she said weakly.

Rena Rouge's mouth fell open. "Ladybug's in love with Adrien Agreste?"

Chat Noir stiffened. "Ladybug's in love with Adrien Agreste?" he repeated quietly, almost to himself.

"Nice!" Carapace said. "She's got good taste."

Chat's eyes snapped back to Marinette. "Wait, _you're_ in love with Adrien?"

Marinette glared. "Thanks, Rena."

The fox heroine had the good grace to look embarrassed. "Sorry."

Carapace smirked. "My boy's got game."

Marinette narrowed her eyes. Alya and Nino were just being reckless at this point. "Your boy? You know Adrien, Carapace?"

The turtle-themed hero blanched. "Uh, no, dude - I mean, I've seen his modeling stuff - but I don't, like, know him personally or anything."

Marinette barely managed to avoid smacking her hand to her forehead. _Good save, Nino._

"Back up," Chat said, rubbing his temples. "You and Ladybug. Both in love. With Adrien."

At this, Marinette flushed. She looked down at her shoes. "Um, yes."

"I can't see either of you letting a boy come between you," Rena Rouge said, hands on her hips. "You know that's ridiculous, girl." She put on her game face and turned to the boys. "I'll handle this. There is no boy issue a good round of girl talk can't fix."

Marinette groaned. "Alya, please just leave it alone!"

There was a pause, and the full weight of Marinette's words hit everyone. Her face fell. "No, I didn't-"

Alya gaped at her. "How did you-"

"Alya?" Chat Noir rounded on Rena Rouge, staring at her intently. "And you and Carapace are a thing, which means-" he turned to Carapace "-Nino?"

Carapace fell to his knees, head in his hands. "Ladybug is going to kill us," he groaned.

Marinette stared straight ahead, eyes unfocused. "How-?" She stopped. "It was me?"

Alya and Nino detransformed, Trixx and Wayzz joining the fray. "Does this mean we get to know who you are?" Alya asked Chat.

He sent Marinette a look she couldn't read. "I'm not sure that's a good idea."

Well, at least somebody was thinking straight.

Marinette rubbed her eyes. "I can't believe." She shook her head. "Me?"

A flash of green light blinded them all, and Chat Noir was replaced by - 

"Adrien?" Nino tackled him in a hug. "Dude!"

"Plagg!" Adrien yelped, glaring at his kwami. "What did you do that for?"

Trixx giggled. "Nice trick."

Marinette stared at Adrien, brain completely blank. This was one revelation too many. Her Chaton? Adrien Agreste? Her Minou? His smile was hesitant. "Hi, Marinette." She didn't even blink.

He had been so close this whole time. Whether she meant Adrien or Chat, she didn't know.

"What's wrong, Pigtails?" Plagg zoomed in front of her face, grin wicked. "Cat got your tongue?"

That brought Marinette back to herself. She glared at the kwami. "That's enough, Plagg."

"But we're not finished yet," Plagg drawled. "You still have one secret left."

Alya stomped over and stood between her best friend and the little god. "I think my girl has been through enough tonight. Though I'd love to know how you figured me out," she added, glancing at Marinette.

"Yes, tell us how you knew," Plagg said, smirking.

"Plagg." Adrien sounded tired. "Just come eat your cheese."

The kwami of destruction huffed. "And why would I want cheese when I could _bug_ Pigtails?"

Adrien looked like he'd been slapped. "But - but you always want cheese."

"Plagg," Marinette growled. "I said that's enough."

The air was thick with tension. Marinette's best Ladybug stare was met by Plagg's devious little eyes. Adrien, Alya, and Nino stared betweeen the two, confused and a little frightened.

"Plagg," Adrien said slowly, "leave Marinette alone."

"No, I don't think I will." The little god drifted closer to her face, grinning like a maniac. "Your Princess is a tough girl, kid. She's got a lot of luck on her side."

All eyes turned to Marinette, who crossed her arms. "I know you're not scared of me," she said. "but aren't you scared of _her_?"

Plagg cackled. "What are you gonna do, Pigtails?" he taunted. 

Marinette stared him down, opening her purse. "Tikki," she said calmly, "get him."

"PLAGG!"

The kwami of destruction yelped and streaked away as a blur of red shot out of Marinette's purse. "It was driving me crazy!" he argued, dodging Tikki's attacks. "They needed to know!"

"They're supposed to figure it out on their own!" Tikki yelled, grabbing his head and slamming him into the ground. "We're not supposed to interfere!" The two kwamis kept wrestling, shouting over each other.

"Marinette?" Nino squinted at her. "Why do you have Ladybug's kwami?"

Alya sunk to her knees. "Ladybug was right next to me the whole time."

"My Lady?"

Marinette turned to Adrien. His eyes searched hers. She smiled. "Hi, Chaton."

"You love each other!" Plagg yelled, spinning away from Tikki.

"Shut up!" Tikki screamed, and she shot after him again.

"Did you mean it?" Adrien asked, taking a step forward. "That you and Ladybug - that you-"

"Yes," Marinette breathed. She was vaguely aware of Alya and Nino watching, but she had eyes only for Adrien.

He froze. "Does it - does it change anything? Knowing I'm Chat Noir?"

She laughed, joy bubbling up inside her. "It changes everything." His face fell, and she stepped forward, reaching for him. "It makes me love you more."

His eyes lit up, and in a second he was picking her up and spinning her around. They laughed together, ecstatic to have found each other at last. Adrien put her down, but kept her close, pulling his lady in for a kiss.

Nino killed the moment. "Wait, is Marinette Ladybug?"

Plagg and Tikki stopped mid-fight to stare at him. "Dude," Wayzz said.

Adrien chuckled, pressing his forehead against Marinette's. "My Lady and my Princess," he hummed. "Perfect."

Marinette stepped back to look at her friends and their kwamis. "So," she said, a hand on her hip, "are you guys going to stop bothering me about giving myself a miraculous now?"

She didn't let them live that down for a long, long time.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! I'll get back to my WIP now.

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [I don't Hate Myself (that much)](https://archiveofourown.org/works/23540338) by [maddiebug](https://archiveofourown.org/users/maddiebug/pseuds/maddiebug)




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